Shower scenes just lagnappe in 'Chicago Fire'

Connie Britton helps make Nashville something special, just as she did with Friday Night Lights. Rayna could have easily been a cartoon diva, but Britton brings nuance to the role. She makes you feel that there’s something at stake as Rayna resists selling out to her father and her music label — and that “something” is the state of her soul. “I cannot be bought!” she insists.

I wouldn’t be so sure about that. Nashville is taking Rayna down a rocky road, and I can’t wait to see where it leads.

Chicago Fire (9pm Wed, NBC)
The generic title lets you know exactly what you’re getting into with this new drama. Windy City firefighters tease, support, and clash with each other while waiting for the next emergency. We get the seen-it-all veteran (David Eigenberg), the wide-eyed rookie (Charlie Barnett), and the no-nonsense chief (Eamonn Walker). The hunky guys walk around the locker room half-dressed, while female squad members show up for assignations in the shower.

But wait! Despite its familiarity, Chicago Fire works. The tone is naturalistic rather than melodramatic. The firehouse camaraderie rings true, thanks to the strong cast and script. And the rescue scenes are downright thrilling, laying out the mechanics of saving a building.
Chicago Fire may well save Wednesday nights.

Beauty and the Beast (8pm Thu, CW)
In this earnest new drama, detective Catherine Chandler (Kristin Kreuk) teams up with a former doctor (Jay Ryan) who occasionally turns into a snarling monster. Both of them are dedicated to solving crimes, so why not form a beauty-and-the-beast partnership?

The fairy-tale context is supposed to make us forgive the silly premise, but Beauty and the Beast gets so silly that even the Grimm loophole can’t excuse it. It’s hard not to be distracted by the fact that everyone on the police force looks like a Vogue model, including the coroner.

And though Catherine is presented as a brilliant detective, she’s prone to running into subway tunnels with no plan for when the train comes around the corner to flatten her.

I think Beauty and the Beast is headed down that same subway tunnel, metaphorically speaking.